


A Swan Fairytale

by MryddinWilt



Category: Once Upon a Time (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Enchanted Forest, F/M, Gen, Lieutenant Duckling, Lieutenant Killian Jones
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-09-10
Updated: 2016-10-05
Packaged: 2018-08-14 06:56:15
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 4,849
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8002681
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MryddinWilt/pseuds/MryddinWilt
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>A young boy finds a cygnet and they become best friends but the bird isn't a bird and the boy doesn't stay a boy.  A fairytale told from multiple POVs and based on incredible artwork by feeling-quilly on Tumblr.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. The Boy and His Swan

**Author's Note:**

> See the artwork here!   
> http://feeling-quilly.tumblr.com/post/134906888653/this-will-probably-never-be-cleaned-up-or

Killian was ten when he found his pet swan. The Captain had sent him on an errand and having finished it early he was walking, practically strolling, back to the ship when he heard squawks coming from the alley. An old tabby cat had cornered the grey cygnet but instead of cowering the bird looked ready to attack. Something about the way the cygnet was fighting even when faced by a cat three times her size made Killian intervene. Once the cat was gone the cygnet fell down and Killian thought it dead. But when he reached down and took the bird in his hand he felt the flutter of it’s heartbeat. He couldn’t just leave it there and so he carefully stuck it in his shirt and hoped no one would notice.

Two days later Liam noticed.

“Little brother, what is this?”

He pointed to the bird curled up in Killian’s hammock.

“Don’t tell anyone. They’ll kill her.”Killian turned pleading eyes on his brother.

Liam gave him a long look but he could see that Killian was already attached to the creature and they were already out at sea. He sighed.

“All right but you keep it well hidden.”

Killian smiled and wrapped his arms around his brother as he agreed excitedly.

The swan stayed hidden. It seemed to sense when to be quiet and when to avoid being seen. The bird didn’t grow at a normal rate but since Liam and Killian were not experts in swans they didn’t notice. Killian named her simply Swan and though he wasn’t given much to eat he always shared with her. At night when he felt she was sad and missed her family Killian would tell her stories. When they made port he would smuggle her out to the town and the woods that often lay beyond and she would stretch her wings. Eventually, with Killian’s help, she learned to fly.

When Killian was fifteen he and Liam were set free, their debt finally paid. Somehow Liam managed to get them both commissions in the Royal Navy and they walked the long miles to the port where the naval academy was housed. Swan followed soaring above them for most of the day before settling down beside Killian to sleep each night. Liam had hoped the swan would run away but it seemed the bird was attached to Killian.

At the academy Swan spent the day on the pond on the grounds or soaring in the air. When Killian got out of classes he would open his window and she would fly in and perch on his head or his knee or on his bed. Killian would tell her about his day and she would honk and squawk as if she was trying to tell him about hers. At night she still curled up next to him and he still stroked her soft feathers and told her stories in the dark.

When he was finally commissioned, a few years after Liam, he was nearly a man. His facial hair had begun to grow and he was ready to take his place as an officer in His Majesties fleet. As he packed his bag Swan sat on his bed watching him carefully.

He looked at her and sighed. “I’m sorry, love. But you are just too big now. There is no way…”

She ducked her head and he trailed off. He moved to the bed and placed a hand on her head. “I’m an officer now. I have to be the example.” She gave a mournful sound and Killian felt that if a swan could cry there would be tears in her eyes. He promised to visit her at the academy as soon as he could.

When his boat sailed away he saw her hovering in the sky above. She did not turn back. She followed him even as the land disappeared over the horizon, until it was too far for her to return and Killian felt his heart breaking. All day his eyes tracked her and when the sun began to set he stood at the prow in a near panic. She couldn’t keep flying. She would die.

“Is your swan going to come in?”

Startled Killian turned to see the Captain at his side. “My swan?”

The Captain snorted. “Aye. Lieutenant Jones and his uncanny swan is the strangest tale to come out of the academy in years.”

“Does that mean she can stay on the ship?” Killian asked his heart in his throat.

The Captain laughed. “I’d been counting on it.”

She stayed on the ship and even helped with reconnaissance on several occasions. With a swan in the air they always knew when pirates were about.

When Liam and Killian were sent to Neverland she wasn’t allowed to come. And Killian made her promise in the strange way of communicating that they had to not follow him. He left her with a friend in a port town and promised he would return in three weeks. The weeks came and went but Killian did not return. After a month and a half the swan flew away in search of her missing friend.

She found him months later on a beach. At first she thought it couldn’t be him. For the man was dressed in black and reeked of rum. But then he looked up and through tear stained eyes he saw her.

“Swan?” He asked in voice as broken as his heart.

She went to him and he dried his tears on her feathers. Then they lay together in the sand and under the moon he told her of Liam’s death and his descent into piracy. She nuzzled into him and he sighed.

“You are all I have now. I love only you Swan.”

She tipped her head and pressed her beak to his lips. Killian drew back at the strange sensation and then jumped back as Swan began to glow. There was a flash of light and suddenly the swan was gone replaced by a young woman with gold hair and a white gown. He stared at her unsure if he was dreaming or if the rum was playing tricks on him.

He shook his head. “Swan?”

“My name is Emma,” she replied.

She was a princess. She loved him. They had broken the curse. And after several more adventures they lived happily ever after.


	2. The Swan and Her Boy

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Emma's POV

Princess Emma was nine-years-old when a bitter witch stole her from her parents and cursed her into the form of a swan. Emma did not know the conditions of the curse or that the witch intended to keep her trapped on an enchanted lake where no one would ever have the chance of giving her true loves kiss. She did not know her fate but she escaped it all the same by being brave and clever. For days she fled. She stole rides on wagons and food from farmyards. Each day she hoped to see her castle or her parents knights. When she reached a town she realized she was no longer in her kingdom and despair overtook her. She was exhausted and hungry and she missed her family and her human body. She tottered into an alley and began to cry. Her sobs drew the attention of a cat and even though her animal instinct told her to run she stubbornly stood her ground. The cat should have killed her but the shouts and stones of a boy scared it away and then Emma was falling into unconsciousness.

When she awoke she smelled wood and saltwater and found herself held tight against a warm body. It was so comfortable she went back to sleep.

She awoke a second time to an empty room. She panicked worried she had been retaken by the witch and honked and flapped her tiny wings in distress. The door opened and a boy with dark brown hair and blue eyes came in.

“Shhh! They will hear you.”

Emma stilled more from shock than obedience. He had spoken to her! Her heart surged with hope that the boy might know who she was, what she was. Not a bird but a girl, a princess. He gave her a lopsided smile and approached her slowly with an outstretched hand. She tipped her head and then allowed him to pick her up. It was most undignified but then in the past few days she had eaten bugs and fought with a cat.

“That’s a good boy,” he said.

Emma looked at him indignantly. He gave a small chuckle. “Girl then?”

She gave a small honk in reply.

“Well, girl I want to keep you but if you make noise the Captain will find you and throw you overboard. Now stay hidden and I’ll bring you some food when I can.” He placed her gently back on a hammock and then scurried out the door.

His name was Killian, he was an orphan, an indentured servant on a merchant vessel, and his brother didn’t like her. While Emma appreciated his kindness and that he fed her human food she was more excited about the possibility of being found in the many ports they would visit. Her family always found each other and Emma knew her parents would come for her, someday. She kept quiet and hidden and at each port she looked for her parents or her siblings, or her knights. She waited for the chance to reveal herself to them but it never came. She tried to be patient, to have hope, but at night she missed them all desperately. Killian would distract her with stories and his dreams for his future and it made the ache in her chest ease.

Killian tried to teach her to fly. Not being a bird himself he wasn’t much help.

“Just flap your wings,” he said as he threw her into the air.

“Like me,” he said as he pumped his arms up and down and ran about the woods.

“You can do this,” he cried as she leaped from a tall tree he had carried her up.

Eventually, she learned to take to the air and it was the best feeling in the world to hear Killian whooping his praise and excitement as the wind lifted her higher.

Years passed and though Emma continued to look at each port her hope faded and she found that she enjoyed her adventure. A girl could not fly; a princess would never be allowed to travel the realms on a ship. The day Killian and Liam paid off their servitude and began their journey to the naval academy she spent the night awake, wondering if she should try and return home. But in five years her family had not found her and Emma was no longer sure where her kingdom was or if they wanted her back. Perhaps her younger brother was happy to be heir to the throne? Perhaps her parents were glad the witch had gotten her revenge at so little cost to the kingdom? Killian lay beside her, solid and steady, he was her home and family now and so she stayed (despite Liam’s dirty looks for the rest of the journey).

Emma enjoyed the naval academy. With very little effort she was able to listen in on lectures and to read Killian’s books. Emma had not enjoyed her lessons from her tutors but now a hunger for knowledge had been awakened and she devoured all that she could. After shooing her out the first three times the librarian, a short brunette woman, started leaving books out for her to read and Emma wondered if she suspected her true nature. Killian and Emma had developed a way of communicating but she found herself frustrated by her inability to share with him her thoughts and feelings. She thought she had made peace with being a swan but she began to long to be a girl once more if only to talk with her friend.

When Liam left he came to Emma where she was paddling lazy circles in the pond. Liam had never quite approved of Killian’s strange pet and Emma had often been lectured by the older brother for her behavior but this time his eyes were soft and his voice kind.

“Take care of my little brother. Don’t let him fall asleep with his candle lit. And make sure he eats regularly. Don’t let that Perkins fellow tease him about being an orphan. And…” he broke off and shook his head. “I can’t believe I am telling this to a bird.”

Emma gave him a honk.

“Just don’t leave him alone, Swan. Promise me.”

Emma nodded her head in a silent pledge. It was an easy oath to make she couldn’t imagine her life without Killian anyway.

She almost broke that oath when Killian left the academy. He was so insistent that she stay, that she was no longer allowed on the ship or in his life. He had outgrown his childhood pet and Emma wished she could cry like a human girl instead of keen mournfully like a swan. It was the librarian who told her to follow him.

“He will miss you. He doesn’t realize the Captain expects you to stay with him. Everyone knows Lieutenant Jones and his swan are inseparable.”

The woman was right. After chasing the ship for most of the day she was welcomed aboard by the Captain himself. Emma became a part of the crew and it was different than her childhood hiding below deck. She was free to roam, she got to fly on the ocean winds, she had her own ration and she felt a part of something bigger than herself. When they made port Killian no longer snuck off into the woods with her. He was far too busy and important for that. Some nights he would go to taverns with the men and Emma missed him and his stories, even though by now she had heard them all.

One night he came home from a celebration stumbling and smelling of rum. He climbed into bed with Emma and she thought he would fall asleep but instead he began to speak.

“Oh, Swan. Why did Liam never tell me how good kissing is? This woman she–“ he sighed and pulled Emma tight against him. “She was so beautiful and her lips were like heaven.” Emma’s heart twisted and in anger she nipped at the soft flesh of his hand around her middle. He cried out in pain, his arms released her and she twisted out of the bed and on to the floor.

“What the bloody hell?” He sat up. “Swan? Are you okay?” He thought she had a physical wound or had eaten something unpleasant but the sour feeling in her stomach and the pain in her heart were things he could not see or fix. She began to wonder what it would feel like to kiss him with lips she did not have or to have a hand for him to hold. She tried not to think about what would happen when Killian found a woman he wanted to marry. She longed to be that woman and the desire scared her and made her mourn for what could never be.

When Liam came to whisk Killian away on a secret mission Emma waited till they were alone and then nipped the elder brother on the calf. He complained and then crouched down to her level.

“Keep him safe,” she said with her eyes and the wave of her neck.

“Don’t worry, Swan. He will return from this adventure a hero. The whole kingdom will sing our praises.”

But Killian didn’t return and neither did Liam and no praises were sung. The weeks passed and Emma was sure that something horrible had happened and so set out to find Killian. She had promised; she would not leave him alone.

When she found him dressed in black, alone, and broken on a beach she knew what had happened. She let him hold her and wet her feathers with his tears. He smelled and felt like home and she never wanted to be parted from him again. He told her of his brother's death and his anguish and then finally that he loved her. Emma’s heart was so full she forgot she was not a human and pressed her beak against his lips.

A sudden warmth swept through her and a bright light shone around her and she felt her body stretch and change. In an instant she was no longer a swan but she was far from the little girl she had been.

She looked at Killian’s shocked face. Would he want her now that she was human? Did she even want to be human?

“Swan?” He asked with a shake of his head.

“My name is Emma,” she replied in a voice she didn’t recognize. His forehead furrowed as he tried to work out what had happened. “I was cursed by a witch. She hated my parents and–“

She stopped speaking as his hand reached for her face. His thumb traced the lines of her cheek while his fingers brushed her eyes, her nose, her lips. She let out a breath as his hand tucked her hair behind her ear and then traveled down her shoulder and arm. His touch was familiar but strange on her skin. Then his hand found hers and he squeezed it tight. There was so much to say and discuss but Emma knew in that moment that Killian didn’t care if she was human or swan he had broken her curse, he loved her no matter her form. And when he learned of her title and her family he insisted they find them, together.


	3. The Lost Princess and The Queen

Snow White was twenty-eight when her oldest daughter was taken from her. It wasn’t long before they discovered it was Regina–that old enemy that Snow had defeated but been unable to kill. She had thought it was a virtue to be merciful now she knew it was a weakness. Snow and David did not rest until they found her and cornered her. 

“Where is my daughter?” Snow demanded her bowstring taut and her anger boiling.

Regina, her magic neutralized by squid ink and her body frozen, sneered. “I killed her.” 

“No,” David whispered. 

Regina laughed. “I pulled her tiny heart from her pathetic body and crushed it. And I will do the same to your other brats. You will–“

But she never finished the sentence. Snow had buried an arrow in her heart and then she fired another and another. Perhaps Regina thought the honorable Snow White didn’t have it in her to kill a defenseless person. Perhaps Regina thought that her former status as surrogate mother, friend, and confidant would protect her as it had before. Perhaps she would have been right if Snow was not half-mad with grief and determined to protect her family no matter the cost. 

Held up by the ink Regina’s body stayed standing, the arrows sticking from her chest and the blood running down her lifeless body. It was Snow who collapsed with sobs wracking her body.

David got her home. David watched over her day after day as she lay in bed tormented by guilt over both deaths. The kingdom went into mourning for both their murdered heir and their heartbroken monarchs. Snow wondered how she could continue to live when her daughter was gone. It wasn’t until her fourth and youngest child, little Ava, climbed into bed with her one afternoon that things changed. Her daughter wrapped her body around her and told her about her day. Simple things like being teased by her big brother Leo, feeding the cat milk, and going horseback riding with David. Snow realized that she was missing Ava’s childhood and decided then that she wouldn’t let her grief keep her from living. 

She didn’t forget Emma. She thought of her every day and spoke of her often to her children and husband. As the years past she would try and imagine what Emma would have looked like or what her laugh would have sounded like. Would she have scrunched her nose like Ava? Rolled her eyes like Leo? Enjoyed dancing like Ruth? They were questions she could never answer but she asked them anyway. The pain never truly faded and there were still nights and days that she couldn’t stop the tears. But David was always there to hold her just as she was always there for him. There were days when she couldn’t be held and didn’t want to lay in bed. Days when she needed the forest air and the thrill of tracking and maybe a little banditry. David never questioned her or told her not to go. He merely looked at her leather leggings and smiled appreciatively, reminding her that he had loved the bandit first, before kissing her and asking her to be careful.

Almost eleven years had passed since Emma’s death when Snow, tired after a long day in the woods, decided to stop at a village tavern. When she went to the woods she always wore a magical glamour to keep from being recognized–today she looked like a kind old woman. She sat in a corner eating, drinking, and watching the other patrons of the noisy tavern. 

A young couple drew her attention as they entered. The young man was handsome, tall, and dressed in black. But it was the young woman–in a brown cloak with a white dress beneath–that Snow couldn’t look away from. Her hair was blonde like Ava’s and she looked near the age Emma would have been if she had lived. Snow watched them as they navigated the room marking the guiding hand on the woman’s back, the small smiles they exchanged and the way their eyes sparkled. They were the picture of young love and it both warmed and pained Snow’s heart with thoughts of what might have been.

Feeling tears threatening to fall Snow decided it was time to leave. She gulped down her drink, threw some coins on the table and made her way to the door. Her blurred vision and her haste made her clumsy and she ran into someone. 

“I’m so sorry,” she declared in the croaky voice of the old woman she appeared to be.

“Watch out you old biddy.” The drunkard pushed her back she tripped over something and went sprawling to the ground. 

There was a screech of chairs and a flash of black and the young man Snow had been watching stepped up to the brute.

“I think it’s time for you to leave, mate.” 

The man puffed out his chest. “Oh, really?” 

Without further warning, the younger man reared back and punched the drunk, who flew back and sprawled across a table. 

“Are you okay?” The young woman appeared over Snow with an outstretched hand and a concerned frown. 

“I’m well enough.” Snow took her hand and stood. The woman smiled at her. Snow felt a twinge of something that felt like a memory and ached like an old wound. 

“Do you need any further assistance? Perhaps I can escort you somewhere?” 

Snow shook her head and patted the young woman’s hand. “Don’t worry about me. Get back to your young man and enjoy his smiles.” 

She blushed. “Killian? He isn’t my young man. He is a friend, like a brother really.”

Snow chuckled. “Oh sweetheart, the way he looks at you is not how a brother looks at his sister.” The girl seemed confused but hopeful and Snow smiled. “Life is short. Tell him how you feel.” 

“It’s complicated.” 

“It always is.” 

As Snow lay next to David that night she thought of the young lovers and though she didn’t imagine she would see them again she wished them every happiness. She was thus shocked but pleased when she saw them the next day. 

It was the day for public audiences, when anyone could beg the ear of their monarch, and the sun was beginning to sink when the couple entered the audience chamber. Snow sat forward in her throne and David, sensing his wife’s sudden alertness, did likewise. 

As soon as they entered the young woman seemed to go into shock. She stared at the dais her eyes darting between the Queen and King with a look of wonder. Killian spared them only a glance before concentrating his attention on her. It wasn’t unusual for people to be nervous in front of royalty so Snow and David waited. After a moment the woman’s mouth formed a firm line and her eyes hardened. She met Killian’s gaze and communicated something with her eyes to which he gave a shake of his head. Snow exchanged a confused look with David. 

“This was a mistake.” The young woman declared in a strong, clear voice and then turned and fled. Instead of following Killian strode forward and executed a precise bow. 

“Captain Killian Jones at your service.” 

“It is us who wish to serve you. State your business.” David gave the form reply while Snow looked at the empty doorway and wondered how far the young woman would go.

“Your Majesties. I beg leave to tell you a story.” 

Snow raised her eyebrows but gave him a nod. “Proceed.” 

He took a deep breath and then the words began to flow from him. He told the story of a girl cursed by a witch into the form of a swan and how she escaped by being brave and smart. How she searched for her family every day until she realized they had abandoned her and made a new family with a boy. How the boy and swan grew up on a ship and in a naval academy and became inseparable. He told how one day the curse was broken and the boy, now a man, finally learned her name. Killian paused and looked at the King and Queen with a piercing stare. 

It was clear that the story was about him and his young woman and Snow understood now what she had meant by “complicated”. She wondered if the girl's parents lived in their kingdom? Had they come seeking help finding them?

“And her name?” Snow asked. 

“Her full name is Charlotte Ava Emma Ruth, but I believe you always called her Princess Emma.” 

Snow felt the world tilt underneath her. She heard David’s gasp at her side and she reached for his hand–needing her anchor–but he was standing and striding toward Killian.  

“That’s impossible.” David’s voice shook and Snow didn’t know if it was with rage or despair. “How dare you come here and try to pass off a fraud as Princess Emma. Our daughter was murdered by the Evil Queen.” 

“What if she lied?” Snow didn’t realize she had spoken aloud until David turned to her.

“What?”

“Regina. What if she lied?” Snow’s voice broke. “What if she wanted us to believe Emma was dead to hurt us?” Tears slipped down her cheeks as she met David’s shocked gaze. “Oh. David. We abandoned her.” 

It seemed so clear now that the woman was her daughter and Snow felt foolish for not seeing it before and angry for believing Regina. She should have known better.

Without another thought Snow was on her feet and running for the doorway desperate to find the young woman, to find Emma. She didn’t have to go far. Emma had been listening at the door the entire time. Her severe expression had melted with the tears she shed as she realized that her parents had thought her dead, that they still loved her, still wanted her.

“Emma,” Snow whispered and then they fell into each other's arms. Snow hardly knew what she said as she tried to explain, apologize, and express her love all at once. Soon David joined them enveloping them both in strong arms. 

“You found us.”

In time Snow learned the answers to all the questions she had asked. Emma scrunched her nose like Ava and rolled her eyes like Leo but she only enjoyed dancing with her father and Killian. Emma’s siblings were as overjoyed as her parents to have their family whole again. And they all worked hard to get to know each other the way a family should.

Snow never fully recovered from the guilt of having abandoned her daughter and remorse at all she had missed in the years they were apart. In those moments Emma would ease her mind by pointing out that without the curse she never would have had her adventures or met Killian and that always made Snow smile. 

Things between Emma and Killian were indeed complicated when they arrived. He loved her but felt unworthy of being with a princess. She loved him but thought he only cared for her as a brother. But with time and encouragement from David and Snow they eventually declared their feelings and managed to live happily ever after.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I thought I would have this up weeks ago. As sometimes happens I get a great idea but then the execution proves tricky. And then I went on a vacation that ended up much busier than planned. I hope this is worth the wait! Ten cool points for the reviewer who guessed his installment would focus on Snow/David. As always appreciate your thoughts on my writing and any crit you may have. Also I am on Tumblr under mryddinwilt so please feel free to come say hi there too!


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